Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Wife He Discarded: From Doormat to Dynasty: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

The next morning at breakfast, Sophia was quieter than usual. She pushed her cereal around the bowl without eating it."What's wrong, baby?" Elena asked."Some kids at school saw the TV show about Daddy last night. I know they are going to ask questions when I get to school.""What will you tell them?""I don't know Mom. I just wish it wasn’t true?""Me too, baby. Me too."James looked up from his toast. "But why would he do that?"Elena sat down at the table with them. "People make very bad decisions James. Your daddy wanted expensive things more than he wanted to help sick kids.""That's mean," Sophia said, her eyes filling with tears."I know. It is mean. It was wrong, and that's why he's in jail."James was quiet for a moment. "Mom, the TV show said Daddy was mean to you too."Elena hadn't realized the kids might see parts of the news report."Yes, he was. For a long time.""Why didn't you tell us?" Sophia asked.Elena thought carefully about her answer. "Because I wanted you to l

Arthur arrived at Elena's office twenty minutes later, looking worried and determined. Elena was still sitting at her desk, but she felt calmer now."Elena, we need to talk about what happened," Arthur said, closing the door behind him."We already talked. It's fine."Arthur sat down across from her. "No, it's not fine. Someone tried to use my past words against our relationship. I want to know who."Elena looked at Arthur's concerned face. "It was Veronica. She wants money and a job, and she thought she could blackmail me into giving them to her."Arthur's expression darkened. "Veronica threatened you?""She tried to. It didn't work.""Elena, I need you to understand something. Yes, I originally saw you as a way to get revenge on Mark. But that changed so quickly I barely remember thinking of you that way."Arthur leaned forward. "The woman who solved those financial puzzles, who stood up to my business partners, who rebuilt her entire life from nothing, that's who I fell in love wit

The flight to San Diego felt like the longest three hours of Elena's life. She sat between Arthur and Agent Shore, trying not to imagine all the terrible things that could happen to Sophia and James."Elena, we're going to get them back," Arthur said for maybe the hundredth time.Elena squeezed his hand. "I know. I have to believe that."Agent Shore was on the phone with San Diego FBI. "They found Mark's rental car abandoned at the marina," she told Elena. "Harbor patrol is checking every boat."Elena looked out the airplane window at the clouds below. "What if we're too late? What if he already left?""Then we'll follow him. Elena, there's nowhere Mark can go that we can't find him."When they landed in San Diego, FBI agents were waiting to drive them straight to the marina. Elena could see Coast Guard boats in the water and helicopters overhead."Ms. Edwards," the local FBI agent said, "we think we've found them."Elena's heart jumped. "Where?""There's a yacht anchored about two mi

Two months after visiting Mark in prison, Elena was making pancakes on a Saturday morning when Sophia appeared in the kitchen doorway."Mom, can we talk?"Elena looked at her nine-year-old daughter, who had grown taller and more serious since the boat incident."Of course, sweetheart. What's on your mind?"Sophia climbed onto the kitchen stool and watched Elena flip pancakes."I've been thinking about Daddy."Elena felt her stomach tighten. The kids had been seeing a therapist to help them process everything that had happened, but they rarely brought up Mark at home."What about him?""I understand now why you left him. And why you had to tell everyone about the bad things he did."Elena set down the spatula and gave Sophia her full attention."What do you understand, baby?""That Daddy wasn't really nice to you. That he said mean things and made you feel bad about yourself."Sophia's eyes filled with tears. "And I was mean to you too. I said Veronica was better than you, and I told y

One year later, Elena stood at the podium of the Grand Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton - the same room where she had destroyed Mark Sterling's empire. But tonight was different. Tonight was about building something new.The banner behind her read "Knight Industries Foundation First Annual Awards for Ethical Business Leadership."Elena looked out at an audience of business leaders, many of whom had been in this same room the day she exposed Mark's crimes."Good evening," Elena said into the microphone, her voice clear and confident. "My name is Elena Knight, and a year ago, I stood in this room to tell you about the worst kind of business leadership."She paused, seeing recognition in many faces."Tonight, I want to tell you about the best kind."Elena clicked to her first slide, showing photos of the companies Knight Industries had helped over the past year."Since Mark Sterling went to prison, Knight Industries has worked with over fifty companies to recover from fraud, rebuild after co